State Parks are supposed to be closed to vehicles. But many in SLO County are still open
In response to the coronavirus outbreak, the California Department of Parks and Recreation announced Sunday that it was shutting down vehicle access and traffic to all 280 state parks, while keeping trails, bathrooms and other amenities open at some locations, including those in San Luis Obispo County.
The temporary rules are part of the state’s effort to encourage people to stay closer to home and practice social distancing.
But visits to several SLO County state parks on Tuesday indicated the new regulations are being sporadically enforced here, with some parking lots cordoned off and others still open for use.
You can’t drive on the beach at Oceano Dunes, for example, and the oceanfront parking spaces in Cayucos are barricaded.
But at Montaña de Oro, lines of cars parked side by side at popular trailheads along Pecho Valley Road, and the lots at San Simeon’s Hearst Memorial State Beach were fairly full as well with people who came to picnic or walk on the beach.
Dan Falat, the superintendent of the San Luis Obispo Coast District of State Parks, said that the situation is nuanced with different triggers for access closures at each space.
“Each park is different,” Falat said. “We want people to be able to go out and recreate. We’re evaluating these situations daily if not hourly and contingency plans in place.”
But enough visitors gathered in groups at Montaña de Oro that one concerned citizen called the park’s rangers.
Los Osos resident Eric Hightower said he wants to keep trail access open while also maintaining health and safety.
“I’m as concerned as I am about it because I’ve seen more people there than any holiday,” Hightower said. “Cyclists and runners are still organizing group activities. ... I was told on Sunday that they would figure out a solution overnight, and it’s still open days later.”
To deter visitors, State Parks has installed physical barriers at several North Coast parks between Morro Bay and San Simeon, even as trails and beaches remain open.
“As of today, the department has parking lot closures within Los Osos Oaks State Natural Reserve, Morro Bay State Park, Morro Strand State Beach, Cayucos State Beach and Hearst San Simeon State Park,” Jorge Moreno, a State Parks information officer said on Tuesday.
Moreno said the parks remain open to pedestrians who wish to exercise in the outdoors, provided that they practice social and physical distancing of six feet from others.
If not, he said, “pedestrians need to leave the park.”
A busy day at Montaña de Oro
On Tuesday, a drive along the road into Montaña de Oro had no apparent parking or vehicle traffic restrictions, despite the statewide notice that suggests otherwise.
Falat said that because of the location of Montaña de Oro, local community members generally use vehicles to get to trails, and that the parking turnouts including both county and state jurisdiction, which involves a partnership in the decision-making about any access closures.
“There are statewide (vehicle access) orders, but California is a large state, and there are nuances to every single park unit, and different trigger points (regarding access),” Falat said. “We’re working directly with the county Emergency Operations Center and Public Health to evaluate this.”
Falat said any state park could close fully to the public if it feels safety is in danger, after observing activities, but he believes most people are acting safely.
As many as 20 cars lined stretches of dirt parking areas along Pecho Valley Road near popular spots such as Hazard Peak, the Dune and Bluff trails and Islay Creek Campground.
“It is the hope of the department that the public will adhere to the advice of public health officials to walk, run, hike and bike in their local neighborhoods and walk to local parks,” Moreno said.
San Luis Obispo County Administrative Officer Wade Horton said at a Monday press conference that the agency didn’t plan to close Pecho Valley Road.
Tony Cipolla, the Sheriff Office’s public information officer, said the agency “is in regular communications with State Parks regarding any potential closures including Montaña de Oro.”
Montaña de Oro is different from Cayucos and Morro Bay, Falat said, where community members’ homes are within walking distance of parks, thus vehicle closures won’t easily keep locals from accessing natural areas.
But Hightower believes citations could be a solution for the cars: “I suggested (to a ranger) ticketing the cars in the parking lot since the lots are part of the state park.”
State Parks wants to stop visitation surges
Sunday’s State Parks news release notes that the 280 vehicle closures were designed to “avoid dangerous visitation surges and help prevent the spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).”
“On Saturday, many state parks once again experienced visitation surges that made it impossible for the public to implement appropriate social/physical distancing practices,” the agency noted. “During this pandemic disease, every person has a role to play in slowing down the spread of COVID-19. Protecting individuals, families and communities comes down to common sense.”
The continued turnout at some high-use parks prompted State Parks to institute full closures to any kind of access including hiking, among them sites in Los Angeles and Mendocino counties.
Activity at SLO County park sites
No full closures have been enacted in San Luis Obispo County so far, but restrictions are in place at some parks.
▪ Morro Bay State Park is closed to camping, but there were still a few campers Tuesday who were allowed to finish out their reservation, according to a State Parks employee. The park posted barriers at State Park Road and South Bay Boulevard with limited vehicle access available to the nearby Bayside Cafe and the State Park Marina.
▪ At the Morro Strand campground, barriers were posted at the entrance off Beachcomber Drive, where cars were parked on both sides of the street. All campers left last week, a park aide said.
▪ The parking lot at Morro Rock is closed.
▪ At Cayucos State Beach, all the parking spots on the beach side of Ocean Front Avenue were cordoned off.
▪ The San Simeon and Washburn campgrounds were completely closed, with barriers at the only entrance to the area on San Simeon-Monterey Creek Road. A sign noted the trails were open in Washburn.
▪ At William R. Hearst Memorial State Beach, the pier was closed, but the gate was open and the parking lot was fairly full. About 50 or more people walked on the beach, and roughly half didn’t appear to be adhering to social distancing. Over the weekend, the pier was still open, attracting fishermen, while picnickers gathered at the park’s tables.
Falat said this site’s parking lot was partially opened because of potential safety hazards of people instead parking along Highway 1 if they didn’t offer space for vehicles stopping during long car trips before and after Big Sur, among other North Coast destinations.
“I visited this park today and there were about 10 cars there,” Falat said on Wednesday.
▪ At Leffingwell Landing State Park in Cambria, the north end of Moonstone Drive was completely closed, with barriers at several entrances. Many people were walking through the campground to get to the beach.
▪ The parking lot at the county’s Shamel Park in Cambria is closed, but the lot at Moonstone Beach is open.
▪ Farther up the coast, the parking areas for other State Parks areas are unblocked, including at the elephant seal rookery.
▪ Oceano Dunes State Vehicular Recreational Area was closed to vehicle traffic on Saturday. Photos of the Oceano Dunes taken mid-Tuesday morning revealed a quiet strip of sand, only occupied by walkers, where normally vehicles pass back and forth between the recreational area and the Grand Avenue entrance.
State Parks hopes to deter tourism
The news release from State Parks advises, among other measures, that California residents “stay close to home when you get outdoors. This is not the time for a road trip to a destination park or beach.”
“Venture out only with people in your immediate household,” it adds.
It also advises people to:
- Walk around the neighborhood and enjoy neighborhood parks.
- Always maintain a physical distance of six feet or more when recreating in the outdoors. If you cannot maintain physical distancing, leave the park.
- Do not congregate in parks.
Stay home if you are sick.
The news release warns that parks will be monitored by rangers, and that access to trails, bathrooms and other amenities could be fully closed if groups continue to gather.
The agency also has temporarily closed campgrounds, museums and visitor centers — and canceled all events.
Falat, however, said State Parks isn’t monitoring who might be a tourist or not.
“We have limited resources and we don’t want to inundate our resources with things to manage,” Falat said. “I don’t seeing us closing everything up and don’t see us opening everything. We have really good cooperation with county agencies. We do look at everybody to make the best decisions to keep themselves safe and healthy.”
This story was originally published April 1, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
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